This year Apple revealed to the world the – already highly anticipated – AirTags, which are small coin-shaped devices that will allow us to locate our objects more easily. This is a concept that is not new, we had already seen it in the hands of other manufacturers, but, as always, those of Cupertino add something additional when launching their products.
Let’s go with the review!
Design
As we could imagine so far, the design of the AirTags is quite simple. At first glance, it looks something like a white coin. The upper part is made of plastic and the lower part is metal. Although the Apple Store offers the option to customize them by putting an emoji in the white part, in Chile we will only see the generic design. The size is little bigger than a 500 Chilean peso coin, for your reference.
If you press go, you turn the lower part, you will be able to access the interior of the device, where we will find its battery and nothing else. Perhaps the only thing I would like to emphasize here is that after a few days of use, the lower metal part began to look quite scratched. Nothing tremendously important, but it is good that they know in advance. Oh, and they’re waterproof (IP67 rated)
There is no way to directly anchor or tie an AirTag, so – for this – Apple offers a series of accessories to put it as a keychain or leave it in the backpack, for example. The keychain is super nice, although quite expensive for what it is. I find the loop for the backpack to be very big and it looks too much, so maybe they want to put it inside so that it is not so obvious that they have it there. However, there are a lot of third-party accessories that are a lot cheaper.
Setting
Once you buy one or more AirTags, you will see that they have a small plastic inside that you will have to remove to start setting them up. Once you do, it will only be necessary to bring the device closer to an iPhone or iPad and follow the steps indicated on the screen.
In the process, it will ask you to select a name for the object, which will be key to being able to locate it more easily with Siri or from the Find application. There isn’t much else we can actually talk about here, given that the process is extremely simple.
Features
And then what are they for? The objective is that we can always locate the object where we have put the AirTag. If we are within the Bluetooth range, we will be able to search for it extremely precisely. Just enough to ask Siri or enter the Find application and we can immediately see the location of the object from the map.
If we press the object, we will see two buttons: one to play a sound and the other to search more precisely. The first works quite well, it is a considerable volume, but at times we felt that it was not so clear where it was coming from. On the other hand, the search function in a more precise way will show us an arrow that moves and tells us where to walk, in addition to the distance at which we are from the lost object.
As we get closer, we will begin to feel a vibration in the phone that will guide us as to whether we are following the right path or not.
In case we are outside the coverage area, all is not lost. An AirTag is constantly sending a Bluetooth signal to all nearby iPhones, so you can use the entire Find My network to locate your lost items with some degree of accuracy.
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Another thing that caught my attention was the preventive notices that the iPhone begins to send. For example, I got out of the car and left the keys in the car, having an AirTag as a key ring. After walking a block, I received a notification telling me that the keys had been left at the address where the car was parked.
Battery
Not to mention the battery. Apple decided to use a removable battery (like typical watches) and, according to them, it will last up to 3 years. The iPhone will begin to notify you when you are close to reaching a low battery level. For obvious reasons, we have not been able to confirm the battery life, but I appreciate that they have made the process of replacing it so simple. For once, we won’t have to spend too much.
Conclution
In summary, AirTags are a very good addition to the Apple ecosystem, although it is very necessary that they evaluate if it is really necessary to spend CLP $ 29,990 to be able to find an object in your house. The function of being able to find that object when it is not in range is also very welcome, since – at least – it gives you a record of where that object has been and that allows us to get closer to it.
A next generation of these devices is going to be great where we can integrate a GPS, since having the real-time location of any object is absolutely necessary. This is where we can think of putting one on our dog’s collar, for example.
In any case, the user experience in general is very good and, for those who really need it, it is a more than justified purchase. For those people, tell them that Apple sells AirTags one unit or in a pack of 4, both packages being available in Chile through all premium resellers at a price of $ 29,990 and $ 99,990 respectively.
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